I would like to share with you one of the many letters I have received from Israel since its inception which may also fascinate you as it does me.

The Israeli Ben Gurion University is itself a miracle made from innovation.

This letter for help was written to me some time ago when Israel was very young and struggling merely to survive.

I no longer receive those letters for help because Israel is happily on her own.

Here is the letter:

Dear Mrs. Zwerling,

With the earth’s temperature rising, and national resources dwindling, pollution worsening and the world’s population growing, the global environment faces a challenge of seemingly impossible proportions – one that can take a miracle of innovation and determination to surpass.

So, it is no surprise that to meet the toughest environmental challenges, the world is turning to a specialist in both impossibility and innovation. Israel – specifically – the foremost maker of miracles in a nation built on them.

Also, the Ben Gurion University of the Negev.

As one of BGU’s most loyal supporters, you know this institution itself is something of a miracle.

Israel occupies the one piece of ground in the Middle East where not a drop of oil resides. So, Israel is inventing methods for using what the Jewish State has in plentiful and permanently renewable supply – and that is the sun.

An Israeli physicist has invented a method using mirrors to concentrate the sun’s energy, multiply it by a factor of 1000, and convert it to electricity – at a lower cost and smaller environmental impact than fossil fuels.

Israeli and BGU innovations are ready. Having invented a way to harness the sun’s energy where it is useful, they have also figured out how to build homes which stay cool in the summer and warm in the winter.

Scientists there have partnered with an Israeli company to develop windows for homes that keep the desert sun’s sweltering heat out during the summer – then can be reversed to solar heat the home in winter.

They are also revolutionizing water use, breeding fish in the desert, and re-using the water to irrigate olives, dates, and even grapes. By using each drop of water multiple times, they are maximizing this valuable and scarce resource.

These are examples of an exciting and promising convergence of technologies with environmental and economic promises.

And, this is the spirit the world needs to confront our most pressing environmental challenges – and this is an especially fitting moment to invest in it.

I am going to talk about happiness, a wonderful emotion, and sometimes elusive.

Who does not want to be happy?

Most researchers agree that happiness involves an assessment of the good and bad in our lives.

Happiness is the emotional balance sheet we keep that allows us to say honestly whether we are living a happy life in spite of bad things now and then.

There is a great deal of stress in this country right now as there usually is due to financial concerns, environment, and chronic health problems along with other pressing issues.

I received a Valentine email and the same phraseology several times since to “be kinder than normal because everyone is fighting some sort of battle.” Things like winning the lottery, getting liposuction, and earning a Masters degree do not make people happy over the long run. The key to happiness and the difference between happy and unhappy Americans is a life that reflects values and practices like faith, hard work, marriage, charity, and freedom. Happiness has a lot to do with values, and it is a key to our prosperity as a nation. As George Washington said, “Happiness and moral duty are irreparably connected”, and as Daniel Boone said “All you need for happiness is a good gun, a good horse, and a good wife.”

So, to conclude, the data tells us that what matters most for happiness is not having a lot of things, but having healthy values. Without these values, our jobs and economy will bring us soulless toil and joyless riches. Our education will teach us nothing. There will be no reason to fight or to make peace for that matter to protect our own way of life. Our healthcare system will keep us healthier. What is the point of good health without a happy life to enjoy?

Also, I believe we all can contribute to those we have contact with by being thoughtful, kind, and sensitive in which case all levels of happiness will be derived.

Looking back on many of my past Commentaries, it was interesting to see so many important issues have not yet been dealt with, and remain the same. This one was written five years ago in 2008, yet nothing much has changed – and yes, Barack Obama is now in his second term.

Last week I spoke about the book “The Audacity of Deceit”, which is about Obama and his plans for change.

Written by Bradley O’Leary, a leading respected conservative strategist and fund-raiser, who has taken election year tactics to a new and powerful level.

O’Leary has developed an online tool to put into the hands of voters, who want to persuade friends and family to look deeper at the Obama value before voting for him. The test, which may be found at BarackObamaTest.com is a 39-question test where voters can compare their views to the true Obama positions that are seldom revealed by the mainstream media.

For example, pro life voters unaware of the radical nature of Obama’s views can now learn how he would withhold medical care to babies who survive abortions and allow them to die in so-called “comfort rooms”.

And, voters who have no knowledge of Obama’s economic vision can learn how his tax, trade, and spending agenda will destroy growth and opportunity, and how his healthcare program will provide taxpayer subsidized healthcare for illegal aliens.

Bradley O’Leary concludes “The next President will determine the destiny of our Country. That President should be a person whose values are yours.”

Abundant kudos to Bradley O’Leary for his wisdom in creating such a unique and authentic way to learn about the values of a prospective leader of the United States and indeed the world.

I took the test and learned that my values differed from Obama’s by 98%.

Listeners – inasmuch as there is no third term in our voting pattern, the web address barackobamatest.com no longer exists.

Perhaps the most destructive, life-changing aspect of American society in the past 50 years has been the advent of political-correctness.

These arrogant rules of behavior have remained in our society for much too long! They are phony and should be discarded.

On the Internet, there are various descriptions of the meaning of “political-correctness” also known as p.c.

It is also ugly, stupid truth about offending people and guarding the First Amendment.

Also, p.c. is called cultural Marxism. It also is called The New Communism.

And finally, it is responsible for stifling liberty and Common Sense.

It is Leftist bigotry.

It is astonishing, but these restrictive rules of behavior have been embraced and tolerated in our society, and even in all of Europe for so many years.

Now for the really destructive aspects of p.c.

It has made intellectual wimps of many elementary and high school students because competition is stifled, and the achievement of excellence is a no-no.

Worse than that – history is no longer factual. It is tampered with and changed so that nobody’s feelings are hurt.

Now, with regard to the damage to our military: Many Americans feel it is immoral for our government to listen in on phone calls originating from outside our Country, where we could intercept any possible danger to our military by our enemies.

It is more important to that p.c. crowd of people to be sure that their First Amendment rights take precedence over our soldiers’ safety in war. Another related topic is so-called torture. I believe that all war is torture. Waterboarding is called torture, though no one ever died or was permanently damaged by a few minutes of waterboarding. And, very often, life-saving information is obtained.

Waterboarding releases information that could save the lives of many of our soldiers. If it saves even one, I believe it should be used. Asking our military to fight with conditions is suicide. Waterboarding the enemy has proven to save many soldiers. To withhold it is crazy. If a country is at war, it must fight to win and not fight with one hand behind them.

So, to conclude – how incongruous is the way of liberal displaced compassion, where those of the political Left will show emotional concern for the perpetrator of evil, or the murderer, and yet minimize and ignore the pain or death of the victim. It is another form of callous political-correctness.